The South Carolina football team will try to avoid its fourth loss in a row as it takes on the No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels in Oxford, Mississippi, at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The Gamecocks' most recent loss came this past Saturday when they fell to No. 4 Alabama 29-22.
The Daily Gamecock spoke to The Daily Mississippian Sports Editor Russ Eddins to gain insight on the upcoming matchup between the Rebels and Gamecocks. The game will kick off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN.
The Daily Gamecock: This season, Ole Miss has a 7-1 record and has been one of the best teams in the country. What has allowed them to have so much success so far?
Eddins: “Obviously, you've got to point to (senior quarterback) Trinidad (Chambliss). He's a big factor in the whole thing. (Sophomore running back) Kewan Lacy in the running game. It was a big hole last year. But I think the biggest thing overall is (head coach) Lane Kiffin. Lane Kiffin has matured heavily as a coach … He's really settled down. He's made much better decisions this year. He's still Lane Kiffin, as always. He's still this fiery, cocky guy, which is what we love about him ... He's much more contained. His decisions have been much better, I think, in a couple of situations last year ... he's really calmed down on those crazy decisions. And he's gone for it in the right times ... He's gone for three instead of going for the fourth down (conversion). And he just made better decisions."
Kiffin has been involved in rumors about the Florida job opening. How do you think that is going to impact the season moving forward?
“You kind of have got to start back in 2022 when the Auburn (job) came about, and they, I think they were, we were 7-0 or 6-0, around that range. And then we finished the year 8-5 ... He had the conversation with the team on Friday, and whatever he said to them must have worked, because we're not seeing a repeat of that ... Obviously, it's still early, only one game, but I think whatever he told the team, he has kept them going, and I don't foresee that being much of an issue ... He's learned, and he's adapting and he's applying things he's learned prior years to now.”
Chambliss has been the starter since sophomore quarterback Austin Simmons was hurt. How has he really been able to impact this Rebel offense?
“He's fit in right where he needs to fit in. Ole Miss, past several years, has had really good quarterbacks who can run. He’s fit into the system very, very well. Austin Simmons has a bit of a better arm. He's a gunslinger, kind of quarterback who's got some potential on the ground. But Trinidad can do it to the air. His arm isn't as good as Austin's. He can't throw down 50, 60 yards, or hit the big play. It was a few plays in the OU game where he just missed it … He isn't as good as Simmons would be, but his ability to make quick throws and then make good decisions is something that Austin didn't have. Austin, being so young, wasn't able to make those quick decisions, good decisions, and he kind of forced footballs where they shouldn't have been. And I think Trinidad has given Austin someone to look up to.”
Kiffin has always been known to have a high powered offense. Who else on that side of the ball could impact the game on Saturday?
“You can point to anyone in the receiving room ... It's a really deep receiving room. Between (junior Cayden) Lee, (senior De’Zhaun) Stribling, (senior Harrison) Wallace (III), you got Winston) "Winnie" Watkins, who’s burst onto the scene as a freshman ... We saw (senior tight end) Trace Bruckler have a good game the other day ... It's deep. It's a really deep room. Anyone in that receiving room can hurt you. Even if a guy like Harrison Wallace, who is that WR1/2 kind of guy, even if he doesn't have a good game, Stribling's gonna step up ... Every single one of the receivers has the potential for, I didn't mention (sophomore) Deuce Alexander, but every single receiver has the potential for a big play pretty much any time”
South Carolina’s offense has struggled this season. What does Ole Miss have to do to make sure the Gamecock offense doesn’t get things rolling?
“They have to contain (redshirt sophomore quarterback LaNorris) Sellers for sure. I think that's the thing they struggle with most this year, is containing mobile quarterbacks. That's what I've noticed. I don't know if, on paper, necessarily, that's what it would suggest. But even if a quarterback isn't getting 70, 80 yards on the ground against Ole Miss, they're picking up good first downs. They're picking up solid first downs ... They need to contain him, and they need to limit big plays. There was two big plays that went against them in the OU game, and those were two touchdowns. If you take away those two big plays, those two busted coverages plays, and if you play a little bit better there, and you don't bust the coverage, that's a much different game on those two plays.”
What does Ole Miss have to do on Saturday to defeat the Gamecocks for a second straight year?
“I think the biggest thing they need to do is just not sleepwalk into the game. You kind of saw them sleepwalk a little bit in Washington State, and they survived that. Going back to the Kiffin coaching thing, every year, he loses the game should not lose. We kind of avoided that so far this year. We're picked to win the rest of the season. Any of them could be a trap game, except the Citadel. South Carolina is a good opponent, good team, obviously underperforming, but still, a lot of weapons there, a lot of talent. As long as they come into the game with the mindset of, 'We have to go 1-0, if we want to make the CFP (College Football Playoffs),' I think they'll be good."
Score prediction?
“I respect y’all's head coach (Shane Beamer) ... I respect what he’s doing over there, but I think we're looking at 24-10 Ole Miss.”